Pickup trucks include an open truck bed mounted on a frame behind a passenger cabin. These types of trucks are known for their versatility and ability to haul items in the truck bed or tow implements from a hitch coupled to the frame. Furthermore, these pickup trucks are often useful to a wide range of operators, from commercial contractors hauling heavy equipment, to weekend users hauling grass clippings and mulch.
In some environments, it is beneficial to close the truck bed in order to protect contents stored therein. There are two main accessories someone can attach to their truck to protect the contents within the truck bed. The first way of protecting contents inside a truck bed is through the use of a camper shell (also known as a canopy, and sometimes topper, cap, bed cap, box cap, or simply shell) which is a small housing or rigid canopy. The camper shell housing is usually made of fiberglass or aluminum and is mounted atop the pickup truck bed. It usually covers the entire bed of the pickup truck, and is large enough to be used for camping purposes. Even though use for camping may have been its initial purpose, it now seems most often to be used for utility and storage purposes—particularly the protection of cargo from the elements and theft.
Another way of protecting contents inside a truck bed is through the use of a truck bed cover (also known as a tonneau cover), which is a low-profile truck accessory that mounts atop the truck bed and substantially covers the same. A truck bed cover does not rise up with the substantiality of a truck cap; rather, it is designed to nest atop the truck bed at a height similar to the top of the truck bed sidewalls. These truck bed covers are ordinarily constructed with aluminum frames and a fiberglass or plastic shell. Then, when the user desires to access the truck bed, the cover provides an access opening to the truck bed. One form of access opening associated with truck bed covers is through the use of hydraulic piston-cylinder actuators pivoting the truck cover between an open and closed position, wherein the user has access to the truck bed when the cover is in the open position. Another form of access opening associated with truck bed covers is through the use of a horizontally mounted retractable door moveable in a manner similar to the action of a roll-up door between an advanced position and a retracted position, wherein the user has access to the truck bed when the door is in the retracted position.
Issues continue to exist with truck covers as they are currently known in the art. Namely, truck covers only provide a single way of accessing the truck bed; either with the open/closed piston-cylinder actuated configuration or the advanced/retracted roll-up door configuration. Thus, a need exists for a truck cover that can provide a plurality of ways in which a user can access the truck bed. The present disclosure addresses these and other issues.